Magnetic moments in the past: Developing archaeomagnetic dating for application in UK archaeology

申请人最近合作并发表了一项研究，该研究建立了一种方法，利用过去地球磁场的测量来确定英国过去4000年考古材料的年代。该项目的主要目的是通过发展其在英国考古学中的实际应用来实现这项研究的潜力。建立年表是研究人类过去最重要的一步，科学的年代测定现在是考古调查的基础。考古磁定年具有巨大的潜力：它可以测定烧制粘土和石头的年代，例如经常出现在考古遗址上的壁炉、窑炉和火炉；它确定了这些特征最后一次使用的时间，提供了与人类活动的清晰联系；它具有成本效益，并且在其他测年方法（如放射性碳测年）存在问题的时期可能是最精确的。越来越多的人对使用考古磁测年作为考古学家可用的年代学工具套件的一部分感兴趣。最近为发展主导的考古部门制定的最佳实践指南明确要求考虑使用它，商业考古部门在挖掘中越来越多地使用它（据估计，目前每年委托使用50-100个考古磁测年仪），都证明了这一点。然而，虽然学术研究为该方法的使用建立了科学基础，但它尚未被常规采用。这部分是由于缺乏可获得的信息来评估其在特定考古环境中的适用性，部分是因为没有协调的、集中的现有考古磁测量记录。该项目将通过开发一个基于网络的资源和数据库来解决这些缺陷，该资源和数据库将整理所有现有的英国考古磁数据，并允许用户解决具体问题，例如特定时期的预期误差，特定类型特征的适用性以及在同一地区或同一类型特征上存在的先前研究。考古地磁日期是通过比较从考古材料中获得的磁方向测量值与通过其他方法确定年代的考古特征的考古地磁研究所建立的地磁场变化记录而得出的。拟议的项目不仅将允许用户校准磁场测量以获得日期，而且还将允许将新数据纳入地磁场模型，从而改进技术以供将来使用。后一个方面尤其重要，因为随着技术的改进，为校准记录收集了更多的数据。该项目结合了布拉德福德大学的学术研究和英国遗产的专业知识，在英国考古领域开发最佳实践。项目成果将主要用于在商业和研究环境中工作的考古学家，以及为考古调查提供建议和预算的考古学家。

The applicants have recently collaborated on, and published, research which establishes a methodology for using measurements of the past magnetic field of the Earth for dating archaeological materials in the last 4000 years in the UK. The primary aim of this project is to realise the potential of this research by developing its practical application in UK archaeology.Building a chronology is the single most important step in the study of the human past and scientific dating is now fundamental to archaeological investigations. Archaeomagnetic dating has great potential: it dates fired clay and stone, for example hearths, kilns, ovens and furnaces which occur frequently on archaeological sites; it dates the last use of features, providing a clear link to human activity; it is cost-effective and is potentially most precise in periods where other dating methods, such as radiocarbon dating, are problematic. There is increasing interest in using archaeomagnetic dating as part of the suite of chronological tools available to archaeologists. This is demonstrated by the explicit requirement to consider its use in recent best practice guidance produced for the development-led archaeology sector and by its increasing use in excavations conducted by the commercial archaeological sector (it is estimated that 50-100 archaeomagnetic dates per year are currently commissioned).However, whilst academic research establishes the scientific basis for the use of the method, it has yet to be adopted routinely. This is partly due to a lack of accessible information allowing evaluation of its suitability in specific archaeological circumstances and partly because there is no coordinated, centralised record of existing archaeomagnetic measurements. This project will address these deficiencies by developing a web-based resource and database which will collate all existing UK archaeomagnetic data and allow the user to address specific questions, such as the expected errors in a particular period, the suitability of specific types of features and the existence of previous studies in the same region or on the same type of feature. Archaeomagnetic dates are produced by comparing measurements of magnetic direction obtained from archaeological materials with a record of geomagnetic field variations built up from archaeomagnetic studies of archaeological features dated by other methods. The proposed project will not only allow users to calibrate magnetic measurements to obtain dates, but it will also allow new data to be incorporated in the geomagnetic field model, thus improving the technique for future use. The latter aspect is particularly important as the technique improves as more data is collected for the calibration record.The project combines academic research at the University of Bradford with the expertise of English Heritage in developing best practice within the English archaeological sector. The project outcomes will primarily be useful to archaeologists working in both commercial and research settings and to those advising and budgeting for archaeological investigations.